Mumbai: The much-awaited encounter between India and Pakistan will take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 15 during the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, which will be played in India.
This will be the eighth meeting between the two sides at a men’s World Cup.
According to the fixtures list released on Tuesday, the World Cup kicks off on October 5 with England taking on New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. India will get their tournament underway against Australia on October 8, which is scheduled to be held in Chennai. The Final will also take place at Ahmedabad on November 19 with November 20 slated as the reserve day.
A total of 10 teams will participate in the event. While the first eight having already qualified through the Cricket World Cup Super League, the final two spots will be determined at the end of the Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe, which concludes on July 9.
India had won the 2011 World Cup, ending a 28-year-long wait for the coveted trophy, beating Sri Lanka in the final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Former India opener Virender Sehwag said that the entire country will be waiting to see Virat Kohli lift the coveted trophy again at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Speaking about India vs Pakistan semifinal match in 2011, Sehwag said: “When we reached the dressing room Sachin Tendulkar said that we have never lost against Pakistan and we need to do the same today. Play with your hearts, and give 100 percent efforts. The results will come, even if we lose it won’t be a big deal, the big deal is reaching this stage. I remember that speech and after that when we went to play we defeated Pakistan. I think they don’t perform well under pressure, like we do. In 90s they played well under pressure, but after 2000 things have changed.”
India has won all the seven previous encounter in 1992, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2011, 2015 and 2019. The only time they didn’t meet was in 2007, when both teams crashed out of the tournament in the opening round.
